Zook mixes athletic new recruits, talented leftovers

Thursday

Illinois freshman wide receiver Arrelious Benn hadn't been on campus more than a week when a story in the New York Times implied that something fishy was going on with Illini football recruiting.

Illinois freshman wide receiver Arrelious Benn hadn't been on campus more than a week when a story in the New York Times implied that something fishy was going on with Illini football recruiting.

Coach Ron Zook, who first built his reputation as a recruiter, was finishing up a top 20 class, and the Times story made it sound like there were reasons outside the rules for the high level recruits to choose Illinois.

"It made me mad,'' Benn said. "That was when I first got here. People were questioning me and my mom, my coach. Why am I here? Did I get something? I had to show them why I'm here. I couldn't lose. If you lose, it's going to make it even worse. That's how I took it.''

Less than a year later, Benn and the Illini are headed to the Rose Bowl because Zook and his staff mixed upperclassmen with playmaking newcomers. No. 13 Illinois (9-3) meets No. 6 Southern Cal (10-2) on New Year's Day (3:30 p.m., ABC).

Illinois enjoyed the nation's biggest turnaround this season with seven wins, so Illinois saw the innuendo. Didn't it seem like just yesterday that Illinois was the punching bag for the Big Ten Conference? Didn't Illinois lose to Penn State two years ago by 53 points in Memorial Stadium?

Didn't Illinois lose its last seven games to finish last season, including a homecoming loss to Ohio of the Mid-American Conference?

"Does (Benn) know what we were doing?'' asked Illini senior J Leman sarcastically. "We were climbing up the mountain. He bypassed on the treacherous stuff.

"This is a hybrid team of veterans and young talent. Coach Zook said the degree we mesh is the degree of how good we'll be. The master of his coaching has been getting the young talent like Martez Wilson, Vontae Davis, Arrelious Benn and Juice Williams to mesh with the old veterans, making one cohesive team. It's been pretty good.''

With Zook's recruiting, there's the feeling that Illinois isn't a one-hit wonder like it was by winning the 2001 Big Ten outright title, then falling off the map with five straight losing seasons.

"Ron Zook said he can recruit when he was hired,'' said former Illini fullback Jim Grabowski, who worked for nearly three decades as the team's radio analyst. "They knew he was a great recruiter. He's proved that. He's gotten some quality talent in here. Most of us expect him to keep Illinois at a high level.''

But Zook's first masterpiece was blending some talented leftovers from former coach Ron Turner's regime with athletic new recruits. There were few chemistry issues between the veterans, who hadn't won much at Illinois, and the newcomers who were taking their jobs.

"No. 1, everybody wanted to win,'' Zook said. "Everybody has been on the same page and been together. The older guys were taking the young guys in. The young guys were smart enough to listen to the older guys. There hasn't been an ego thing.

"It's amazing what can be accomplished when you don't care who gets the credit.''

Let's give some credit where it's due. Of the 24 starters listed for the Rose Bowl -- 11 on offense (using a fullback and no tight end) and 11 on defense with the punter and kicker -- 14 were recruited by Turner. Of the 22 players listed on the second string offense and defense, 18 were recruited by Zook.

"The biggest thing we had to do was improve the athleticism,'' said recruiting coordinator Reggie Mitchell. "There were guys here. There weren't a lot of players across the board.''

The offensive line and defense are loaded with Turner's recruits. The playmakers on both sides of the ball, generally, are Zook's recruits, although junior running back Rashard Mendenhall first committed under Turner. Illini senior J Leman is the typical Turner recruit: a smart, hard-working overachiever.

Illinois recruited for the spread offense, going after more receivers and fewer fullbacks. Speed is the first requirement for any recruit under Zook.

Now Illini recruiters have another postcard to show recruits. A Rose Bowl trip won't hurt recruiting.

"Whether it affects recruiting or not, that's for the recruits to decide,'' said offensive coordinator Mike Locksley. "The fact that we're going to the Rose Bowl has helped the cause of recruiting. For us to be the program we want to be, we need to go out and win the game.''

To do that, the Illini will need big plays from the old and the young, players brought here by Zook and Turner.

John Supinie can be reached at Johnsupinie@aol.com. For more coverage, read Illini Talk blog at www.sj-r.com and www.pjstar.com .

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